Love, Mom
by pamz
Summary: What if Veronica had left something else besides the money in Paige's desk drawer?


**Author's note:** So it's almost 12:45 am Tuesday morning here and I just finished writing this so it's probably full of mistakes and typos and I'll probably want to change a million things after I post it. But I needed to get this out. I just might be able to sleep tonight.

 **Disclaimer:** This story is an amateur, not-for-profit publication produced solely for the enjoyment of other Scorpion fans and is not intended to infringe upon any rights of K/O Paper Products, Blackjack Productions, Perfect Storm Entertainment, SB Films, CBS Television Studios, or anyone else.

 **LOVE, MOM**

Paige sat in shock as she stared at the envelope filled with $100 bills. Where had her mother gotten all this money? Why hadn't she used it to pay off her debt to the greasy slimeball who didn't even have the courtesy to let a daughter grieve for her mother before harassing her for money?

She picked up a stack of the money and fanned the end of it. She and Ralph would never have to worry about money again. She could quit her job, spend more time with Ralph, not have to worry about sinkholes and counterfeiters and illegal arms dealers and kidnappers and. . .curly haired geniuses with an IQ of 197 who drove her to distraction.

Taking a deep breath, Paige put the bills back in the envelope and tried to close it back up. That's when she noticed another smaller envelope underneath. A white one with her name written on it in her mother's handwriting.

Veronica had told her everything she'd wanted to say, hadn't she? Why would she need to write her a letter? Wondering if there was some sort of explanation of the money's origins or maybe a password for an offshore bank account, she slit open the flap and unfolded the single sheet of paper she found inside it.

To my beautiful daughter Paige,

I can't watch while you make the biggest mistake of your life. Marrying your father was the biggest mistake of mine. I thought I needed someone safe and stable so I wouldn't need to do the things I do. But it didn't work, in fact it failed miserably. And I ruined your father's life. . .and yours.

You may think Tim is what you want. Someone safe and steady. Someone who'll always say and do the right thing because they've been told it's the right thing to do and say. Your father was that way. Giving me flowers and candy and jewelry for special occasions. Taking me out to dinner for birthdays and anniversaries. It's what he thought I wanted, when I never said I wanted any of it. I wanted adventure, excitement, spontaneity. Not predictable blandness.

I was so unhappy. I ran cons to make myself feel better, but it didn't help. I hurt your father every time he had to bail me out of jail, hurt you every time I missed something important in your life because I was chasing a long con. I don't think I ever really loved him and that made what I did so much worse. He didn't deserve what I did to him.

I'm worried you're going to make the same mistake I did. I settled for what everyone expected me to settle for. The same way you're settling for Tim because you think Walter will never be the man you want him to be. If he wasn't the man you wanted him to be, you would have never fallen in love with him in the first place. You're willing to let him slip through your fingers because you've been told you shouldn't want him. Yes, he's arrogant and rude and stubborn and childish at times. He's a man. All men are like that to some degree. He loves you more than anything in this world and he's dying inside every day you push him aside for Tim. You're the reason he's regressed so much in the past few months. You stopped helping him evolve. You tossed him in the deep end and you're letting him drown because you don't want to admit you've failed him.

For your sake and for Ralph's, I hope you decide to throw him a life preserver before it's too late and you let the man you love sink to the bottom and lose him forever. Please don't make the same mistake I did. I pay every day for what I did to you and your father. I wouldn't wish this on anyone else, especially my own daughter. Tim is all wrong for you. You'll end up hating him. You wish every day you'd taken a chance on Walter. I'm not promising it will be all rainbows and kittens with him, you'd get sick of that, just like I did. You'll keep each other on your toes. There'll probably never be a dull moment. But that's what makes life worth living.

If you've read this far, I might as well spill another secret. Ralph is the one who contacted me. He found a copy of your birth certificate while doing a school project, learned my name, and looked me up on the internet. We've been writing to each other for two years now. He's told me all about you and his father and how you both found a home at Scorpion. And he's told me all about Walter. How important he is to both of you. Your son loves him.

But I suspect you know that. He's always told me he's your number one priority but lately he feels that isn't so. He told me you had trouble connecting with him in the past and that Walter was helping you to do so. But now you've all but removed Walter from his life and put Tim in his place. Someone who may treat your son well, but will never connect with him on the same level Walter does. You're losing your connection with your son and you either have no idea it's happening or you don't care that it is. You'll end up hating yourself for driving your son away as much as I do for driving you away.

Well, I certainly didn't mean for this to go on forever. But I guess I've needed to get this off my chest for a long time. I want to thank you again for allowing me to spend time with my grandson, and you, and the wonderful family you found for yourself. They are special people and you should fight for them as fiercely as you fight for Ralph. And you especially need to fight for Walter. He needs you the most. But you already know that. I hope when the time comes (which it will) and you have to make a choice, you'll go with your heart and make the right decision.

Give Ralph another hug and kiss for me.

Love,

Mom

ooooo

Paige set the letter down on her desk. It was then she realized tears were streaming down her face. Oh, God. She'd screwed up so badly, she wasn't even sure where she'd gone wrong. Wiping ineffectively at her damp cheeks, she then stuffed the letter back into its envelope, tossed it on top of the money, and closed her desk drawer.

She knew what she had to do now. It was going to be difficult and messy and she was going to have to swallow a lot of pride. But she was not going to make the biggest mistake of her life. Her heart had made its choice two and a half years ago. And deep down, she knew he had been the right choice all along.

 **FIN**


End file.
